Known hydrant valve seat configurations are illustrated in FIG. 1 through FIG. 4. The hydrant 10 generally includes a vertical barrel 12 which extends upwardly from a connection with a contoured shoe 32, which is connected to a water supply pipe. A drain ring housing 20 is secured between barrel 12 and contoured shoe 32 via a bolt 26 and is sealed with respect to barrel 12 using a gasket 28. A bronze seat ring 22 is threadedly engaged to an interior portion of drain ring housing 20 through a threaded connection 24. Seat ring 22 has a beveled seating surface 23 defined in an interior portion thereof for sealing against a main valve element 36. Typically, main valve element 36 includes a side surface 46, a top surface 44, a bottom surface 48 and a first beveled portion 37 disposed between side surface 46 and top surface 44. In operation, a valve stem 14 would be pulled up, causing a valve plate 34 to urge main valve element 36 toward seat ring 22 such that first beveled portion 37 engaged beveled seating surface 23.
However, the current design of main valve element 36 includes various undesirable characteristics. When pressure is applied to the valve, plastic creep occurs causing a bulge 38 to form in the recess defined between seating surface 23 and valve plate 16. As a result, the material forming main valve element 36 would eventually become fatigued, causing the top surface of the valve element to deform and eventually break off. As a result, frequent maintenance of such devices was required. The angle of first beveled portion 37 was large such that a larger diameter was needed to create a sufficient seal between first beveled portion 37 of main valve element 36 and beveled seating surface 23. This large diameter contributed to the formation of bulge 38. If main valve element 36 failed, hydrant 10 would have to be taken out of service until a new main valve element was installed.